NORFOLK, Va. – Dominique Swope ran 12 yards for a touchdown with 2:36 remaining, and Georgia Southern's defense helped erase a two-touchdown deficit in the fourth quarter and beat Old Dominion 49-35 in the FCS quarterfinals.
Jerick McKinnon ran for four touchdowns for the Eagles (10-3), who completed just two passes but ran for 602 yards in pursuit of their seventh national championship. They trailed 35-21 entering the final quarter, then scored the final 28 points.
Quarterback Taylor Heinicke of Old Dominion (11-2), who broke Steve McNair's single-season passing yardage record during the game and became the first quarterback with over 5,000 yards in a season, fumbled to set up the Eagles' tying drive in the fourth quarter, then threw incomplete on fourth-and-6 from his own 39.
Three plays later, Swope's second touchdown run put Georgia Southern in front to stay.
Swope finished with 186 rushing yards and McKinnon had 171.
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